America Must Keep the Peace

By

Max Boot

Updated April 22, 2002 12:01 a.m. ET

President Bush pledged last week to launch a Marshall Plan for Afghanistan. Sounds good. But in order for a rebuilding effort to succeed, it will require a secure environment that, in the short term, can be provided only by troops from the U.S. and its allies. Unfortunately, despite the president's remarks, there is no sign that he is willing to expand the foreign peacekeeping presence, which so far has been limited to fewer than 5,000 soldiers, confined to Kabul. The rest of the country, it seems, can fend for itself.